Past President Kelli Thode, filling in for our president, Kari Petrasek, started the 6th meeting of the year and the 5,657th meeting of the Rotary Club of Everett with the Pledge of Allegiance.

 

Walt Greenwood sang “The Frozen Logger” which according to AI is a famous American tall-tale folk song written by James Stevens in 1928. It tells the humorous story of a tough lumberjack and is best known though recordings by folk revival artists like The Weavers and country legends like Johnny Cash and even the Grateful Dead and now Walt Greenwood.

 

Henry Janicki with no preparation, came up with a gem. “Nothing ruins a dinner faster than a greedy piglet.” Be generous and not greedy.

 

John Olson introduced Past District Governor David Lukon.  Ashley Bolden introduced Khara Turner from USBank. She is a potential member. Neha Kaur introduced Madhu founder of the Joy of Reading and has opened over 230 libraries and Karuna is visiting from Nepal. Madhu is a member of the Rotary Club of Arlington.

 

Kelli Thoede announced that a membership social coffee hour will be held on August 12^th at Choux Choux Pastry 8:00AM to 9:00AM.

 

Kari Quaas Summer in the City volunteer opportunity August 14-15 on the intersection near Funko. Friday and Saturday.

 

Kelli Thode Blood Drive at the Everett Elks Lodge August 28^th

 

Kelli Thode Presented a District Award, Avenue of Service Award for Club Service to Ashley Bolden for her overall awesomeness as the Membership Chair. The committee brought in 7 new members and there are more in the queue for this year. She also helped organize the Community Coffee Hour.

 

Tammy Dunn announced the ERYF Trustee board nomination for the open position from the completion of the term of Anna Marie Laurence. So far Will McMahan has been nominated for the 3-year term. The nominations will be open until the meeting next week.

 

Kelli Thode and David Lukov informed the club about the passing of Past President and overall great guy, Larry O’Donnell. There will be a viewing on Thursday, September 10 from 10:00 to 2:00. A grave side service September 11 and funeral service September 12 at Our Saviors Lutheran Church.

 

Andy Hall celebrated his 74^th birthday.

 

Greg Tisdel had a bell ringer for his 47^th family reunion. On Friday they had 105 people attend, on Saturday 90 people attended and Sunday they had 70 people attend. That is a lot of family time. Greg will also miss Larry O’Donnell.

 

Betsy Baker-Bold had a bell ringer for the passing of Larry O’Donnell, and her family spread the ashes of her dad, Marc Baker, on Stevens Pass.

 

Barb George had a bell ringer for the passing of Larry O’Donnell. Larry helped and encouraged Barb with the Everett Museum programs such as the weekend Puppet Show.

 

Will McMahan had a bell ringer for Larry O’Donnell. Larry was Club President Will’s first year in Rotary. “Larry was a gift to us and the community.”

 

There was a reminder to donate more prizes to the Raffle Committee.

Winner Number 1 – Henry Newton selected Wine and Lifesavers.

 

Winner Number 2 – Will McMahan selected a Rotary hat and Lifesavers

 

Winner Number 3 – Brian Hollingshead selected a book and Planters peanuts.

 

Kelli Thode introduced our speakers, Brandon Schmitt and Brian Johnston, from Behind the Badge Foundation. Brian is a 36-year member of the Monroe Police Department, and Brandon has been a volunteer for the past 2 years.

 

The mission of Behind the Badge Foundation is to honor law enforcement officers who have died or suffered serious injuries in the line of duty. They serve as a trusted resource, providing immediate and ongoing support to families, agencies, and communities in times of critical need.

 

They also maintain the Washington State Law Enforcement Memorial, commemorating the lives and dedication of officers who have died in service to the communities of Washington State. The memorial is located on the Capitol grounds in Olympia. It overlooks Capitol Lake and is a place for quiet reflection. The Memorial started in 1995 when a group of law enforcement officers and survivors – inspired by the national memorial – decided to create a local version. The team worked for almost 10 years to fund and build a memorial worthy of Washington’s fallen. The foundation is funded by private donations only.

 

Kari Quaas and Russ Kimball – Scholarship Committee/Youth Program

 

Respectfully Submitted,

 

Photography Submitted,